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CORVALLIS - Kristin Dulley's first 4-H experience gave quite a jolt. She had just arrived in Switzerland to spend the summer, and a few hours after meeting her host family, she found herself in a barn helping deliver a "baby cow."

"Wow, that was a little shocking," Dulley said, laughing. "They told me I would be living on a farm, but I didn't realize how much farming I would actually get to do." The next day, Dulley continued, she was asked to help feed the cows.

"I didn't know what cows eat so I had to ask," she said. "Later I helped the family dig potatoes in a small field."

"Up to that time, all of the potatoes I'd gathered came from the produce section in a grocery store," Dulley said. "After four hours of bending over and digging, I wondered how anyone could make money on potatoes selling them for a price like $.29 per pound."

The Portland native and Western Oregon University student traveled to Switzerland earlier this year as a participant in the Oregon State University Extension Service's International 4-H Foreign Youth Exchange (IFYE) Program.

Her visit to the tiny Swiss village of Rohrbachgraben left her speechless for a moment, but not because she had never been in Europe before. Dulley had never been in a barn before.

"The rural aspect of the trip was something completely different for me," said Dulley, an experienced European traveler who had previously traveled to Germany as a high school exchange student.

Born and raised a city dweller, Dulley grew up near the center of downtown Portland. She had never been in a 4-H club or on a farm, although she "passed by some farms and farm communities driving around Oregon."

"I had no idea what I was going into," she said. "Coming from a city like Portland to the town of Rohrbachgraben which had like 65 inhabitants was a real eye-opener for me."

Dulley spent her summer in Switzerland living in the homes of four Swiss farm families. She was treated as a family member, sharing in the everyday activities of her hosts, including chores.

"They (IFYE program coordinators) just told me I was going to Switzerland and that I'd be in a rural area," Dulley said. "I guess I was thinking that it wouldn't be such a small farm and community. It was a new experience in every way, shape and form."

That's the kind of response Lillian Larwood loves to hear.

"All I can say is mission accomplished," said Larwood, OSU Extension 4-H specialist. "Giving young people the kind of experience that Dulley enjoyed is what the IFYE program is all about."

The goal of the 4-H IFYE program is to help participants experience first-hand what family and community life is like in other countries. To ensure they get the full flavor of life in foreign cultures, participants are frequently sent to live with host families in rural farm communities.

"This program is meant to be more than just a youth exchange," Larwood added. "It's designed to give young people a realistic and genuine introduction to people from other countries and their cultures. What better way to do that than to give young people the opportunity to experience first hand what its like to be part of a family in another country."

The IFYE program came into existence in 1948. It was a product of efforts by U.S. government leaders to increase contacts between Americans and other cultures throughout the world following World War II.

The program is open to young adults 19 - 30 years old. Contact your local county office of the OSU Extension Service for more information.

Dulley found out about the IFYE program from a classmate at WOU. Given her earlier visits to Europe, she figured the trip to Switzerland would be like the other trips. However, nothing she'd done in Europe before prepared her for the IFYE experience.

"I learned how to milk a cow and drive a tractor," she said. "And I learned that farm life in a small European village is a lot of hard work. It was more fun and interesting than I could've imagined."

Back home in Oregon, Dulley is putting her enthusiasm about the trip to good use. IFYE participants become ambassadors for the program when they return, visiting elementary and middle schools where they give reports about their experiences abroad.

"I'm looking forward to that part of the program," Dulley said. "I plan to be an elementary school teacher so working with school kids is what I want to do. I have a lot of European experiences I can report on, and now I have some farm experiences to talk about too."